Tale of Heroes - Part 1: Reign of Diaz (PG:14)

[Schade]

Keres Adrastea
That tavern in the Unknown Forest

Keres kept staring into his Crystal orb, somehow sucking the energy out of the people of the tavern, and gaining it himself. He did feel all fired up, and knew that if he continued, he would most likely kill all the others in the tavern. Suddenly, he felt a change in the flow of energy. Instead of recieving the usual energy, he could feel something different. Someone in the tavern wasn't human. He looked up from the orb, and felt all the energy go back to its original owners as he stopped sapping them. nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, except from a newcommer being guided by the fat maid over to a different corner of the tavern. He looked weird; He did not have any shoes on, and he looked very.. brown. Brown clothing, brown, long hair etc. "What an interesting individual" Keres thought. It appeared the difference in his magical Orb came from this person, thus making him the non-human being he had noticed earlier. He gave a sign to the maid, and had her come over. "Who is that guy in the corner there?" he asked her directly. She was startled by his voice, and answered: "Boy, I don' know who that is, and I ain't gonna find out. Y'al crazy people, with your mysterious behaviours!" and she went on about how nothing was normal around there.

Later that night, Keres had finally fallen asleep, and dreamt of curses. He suddenly woke up, and saw that two men stood over him. They appeared to be armored, and they looked down at him with a hint of arrogance in their eyes. "Get up, pretty boy!" one of them snarled, and the other one took his legs and dragged him out of the bed. Confused by the entire happening, Keres didn't have any time to respond, nor did he have the energy to do so. Hie eyesight quickly adapted to the darkness of the night, and he was placed in a cage outside the tavern, and saw that some of the others from last night was there as well. Soliders came out of the tavern with a lot of others, some drunk, some extremely drunk, and some they had beaten pretty bad. "What is the meaning of this?!" Keres said directly to one of the soliders guarding the cage. "Emperors orders!" He answerd strictly. "Now, shut up". He threw a rock at the cage, and it hit Keres in the head, and he felt his anger piling up. he then started chanting something he had heard from his dream, and a small ball of fire took form in his palm. luckily, he had not undressed when he went to bed the night before, so he had his weapon on him. attaching the claws, he held the fireball in his other hand, close to the bars of the cage, and felt a satisfied glee when they started melting.

After some more of the bars melted, Keres was free, and his first thought was to flee the area. However, he noticed that the non-human brown guy from last night seemed to have some troubles. He didn't speak, but he was being badly beaten by two guards. Why wasn't he defending himself? "Here!" Keres said loud, holding out his clawed hand. A dim light appeared out of nowhere, and his Orb came flying in a quick flash, gently hovering in his hand. It wasn't like him to help others, but that non-human character seemed interesting, and could prove to be a good ally, if necessary. Keres quickly appeared behind the first guard, like a shadow, under his cape, and sliced his throat with his right hand. Before the two others could react, he sent the orb straight into the secound guards face, and he fell over and didn't move. The last guard were frightened by Keres, and stopped beating the guy, and ran off to get his sword. Keres took this time to chant another spell from his dream, and the orb glew in a purple light, before the first guard he took down, rose up, his eyes completely black. Speaking an unknown language, Keres told him to go after the guard who ran off, and the revenant obeyed. After that, Keres held out his hand to the non-human guy, offering to help him up.

 

[Samantha Sparks]

OoC: Basically, she sort of turned the water into ice for a split-second by controlling it. That's the easiest way to word it. No romantic feelings have emerged yet, only pet-master feelings.

Undine Pandora Aqua
Meryl Forest

Undine had a dream. That dream again. Her tribe being genocided by the troops. Now that she thought of it, she looked at things from an optimistic point of view and had one more goal - to find another member of her tribe.
That caused her to wake up. "Huh?" she felt pretty dazed. Next thing she knew, the Captain was leaving the cave. Just before he could attempt to go through the water, she stiffened the water for a while, just in time for the Captain to be unable to phase through it.

"Wait," Undine's face saddened, "I just met you and want to know more about you..."
With that, Undine then summoned a water whip into the deep depths of the cavern, and pulled out her silky cloth, which she used to tie around her waist. She then went down the waterfall, before adding two pure white seashells to her chest, conveniently censoring herself. She couldn't smell any more soldiers.

In general, she disliked taling, but she had gained a liking to the Captain, although it was closer to how an animal would feel towards a human who rescued it than a crush. "Let us speak on the way..."

 

[AJ2000]

Meryl Forest
Artus & Natalia

“Yes, you proved to be just the distraction I needed to defeat them.” The girl said, observing her nails.

Yeah, right…. Artus thought. He knew she was probably just trying to get him rustled up. And besides, Artus found that kind of funny.

“I’m Natalia Denar. Surely you’ve heard of our family, we’re one of the richest in the country.” She gave Artus a smug smile, and looked at him from the corner of her eye. Artus widened his eyes a bit. If she really was part of the Denar family, than what was she doing here all alone? Artus didn’t know the specifics of her family name, but he had in fact, heard of her family. Almost everyone has, they were famous for being extremely successful businesspeople. They were pretty well known in the bigger districts, and they even owned the farmland near Artus’ hometown. “Kale is indeed where I am going, for now at least. I guess I could allow you to accompany me on the way.”

Artus was lost in thought, still in awe that he ran into someone from the Denar family. Not to mention it was in the most unlikely of places. “Uhhh…right. Yeah I’ll come with you.” He said, snapping out of his train of thought. “I mean it’ll be a nice change to travel with someone rather than be alone.” He didn’t bother asking what she was doing all alone, as she didn’t really seem like the type of person that would open up so soon. “Alright, I guess we better get going then.” Artus sheathed his sword and tightened his belt up, and they started to walk along the path, following it eventually out of Meryl Forest.

------------------------

Kale
Artus & Natalia

Artus and Natalia eventually made it to a small arch, held by two small, but thick, brick pillars. There was sign on the arch that read, “Kale”, in ornate writing that made it look organic. This is it. Thought Artus. The main reason for coming to Kale was so he could find a new place to live, and hopefully get some sort of job. He knew it wasn’t a rural place like Nalan, so any type of farm-work would be out of the question, but hopefully he could do something that would make a good living. He knew Natalia was loaded, but Artus was no businessman. He probably couldn’t even sell a bottle of water to someone. “Alright let’s go inside.” He said to Natalia. They started to walk under the archway and into the city. Right away Artus noticed something odd. Kale is a city that is usually bustling with activity, such as merchants, kids playing, people running errands, but for some reason the place was nearly empty. There were a couple of old people sitting down near a large fountain, as well as a couple of soldiers from Kale standing about, mingling. One of them took a look at Artus and Natalia, and walked up to them.

“Hey, you folks should leave. This is not the time for any visitors.” The soldier spoke. It was obvious he was a soldier of Kale, due to his pale, light blue armor. He had short, dirty blonde hair, and carried a basic spear. Artus wasn’t sure why they were trying to get them out of Kale, but from the depressing mood of the city, it may have not been a bad idea. He wasn’t the type to question authority, but Artus had travelled too far to just go back.

“Uhhh…I’m not trying to be rude, but what’s the problem?” Artus spoke with a slight hint of hesitation. He didn’t want to get off the wrong foot with these soldiers. “I just wanna talk with Kazu…King Kazu I mean, sorry.” Artus wasn’t used to talking to royalty, so he often forgot to use titles.

“Look, if I gave everyone who came here access to speak with him, we’d have another unnecessary problem on our hands. I’m gonna guess you want some sort of request like money?” The soldier suddenly changed his tone to a more irritated sort of voice and let out a sigh. “I’m not forcing you to leave. If you want to stay, the inn is right over there. It may not be the comfiest place, but it’s cheap. But I'm strongly encouraging you folks to leave as soon as possible.” The soldier gave his words and walked off.

Artus wasn’t expecting anything like that to happen when he imagined coming to Kale. He thought the King would be waiting to welcome anyone with open arms. Well…I guess that’s it. He thought. I come all this way, and end up being stuck with some stuck-up rich girl, and then almost get forced out of Kale… He wasn’t happy with the results, but there was nowhere else he could go. He may as well stay at the inn. He turned around to Natalia. “Well, looks like I’m screwed.” He let out a sigh. “So, you got anything you want to do while we’re here? I mean we can look around and explore few places if you want. If not, I plan on staying at the inn for tonight and you’re welcome to stay if you want. I’m pretty sure I got enough money for the both of us.” Artus thought for a second and realized he just offered to pay rent for a girl who’s family was one of the richest in the country. But still, it was the gentlemanly thing to do, and the offer was still there.

 

[SteelKing 2012]

Coelnar Ellidyn
Oakwood Fields

Coelnar made it to the lake a couple of hours later, and was grateful for the opportunity to drink. There was easy hunting too, as animals from all around the plains gathered there for water. The hardest task was to make a fire, as all the nearby wood was damp. The few times he made a pile with it, it wouldn't light, no matter how hard he tried. This was a problem, as he couldn't risk eating his fresh-caught rabbit raw. He'd seen what happened to people who ate raw meat, and it was... Unpleasant, to say the least. Eventually, he gave up, and resigned himself to a hungry night. Still, he was exhausted, and as he lay down, his eyes closed easily, and he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

The next morning...

Coelnar woke to find himself covered in grass, and soaked to the skin. It must have rained during the night, he thought, examining the mud plastered to his hands. I need to decide where to go, I suppose.. he told himself. Still, there was no hurry. He decided to wash first. With the state he was in now, any traveler he met would think he was a savage of some sort. It didn't seem that many people headed this way, though. His best chance would be to follow the dirt road that ran across the plains. With any luck, there'd be a sign somewhere along it. Not that he'd been too lucky lately.

After he washed, Coelnar felt like he had far more energy, and was finally ready to set off. He slotted his axe into its sheath, and pulled it over his back. The soldiers were long gone, and there didn't appear to be any predators nearby. Still, better safe than sorry, he supposed, as he headed towards the road with a dry chuckle. He smiled to himself. Once he found somewhere to stay, things would surely get better.

He reached the road within a few minutes, and started walking along at a leisurely pace. Now that he looked, the plains weren't as wide as he'd originally thought, and he realized that crossing them would take him a day at most. A day almost felt like too long, though. He quickly grew bored, because aside from the lake and road, the plains were basically featureless, the only changes in scenery a couple of small hills, or a passing rabbit. He missed having someone to talk to, and hoped that there was a city nearby. Something stood out in his memory. Occasionaly, a few of the villlagers would take one of the carts down to a nearby city, to sell clothes and food, in return for money. That meant there had to be a city somewhere around here, for sure.

After a couple of hours, he reached a fork in the road, with an old looking sign pointing towards one of the paths. 'Kale' was written on it, in scrappy, badly carved letters. Not very professional, Coelnar thought with a sigh. Would a little craftsmanship be too much to ask, really? He recognized the name, though, and decided that it would be the best way to go. Shaking his head in exasperation, he turned, and began heading down the path to Kale.

 

[Deleted member 300066]

Ethan Daggett: Post 5

Captain Ethan Daggett
Meryl Forest

Just as Ethan was about to leave, the running water froze, he was trapped, so Undine had woken up after all?
“Wait,” She said “I just met you and I want to know more about you… Let us speak on the way” She said.

The pair then set off north towards kale, Ethan slung his coat over his shoulder, as it was too wet and uncomfortable for now.
“So you want to know more about me, eh?” Ethan said to Undine as they walked. “Well, I'm Ethan Daggett, but you already knew that. Not much to talk about to be honest" He lied "Born and raised in a hell-hole by the name of Port Dernsway during my childhood. I spent the rest of my life travelling, I was a sailor you see.” Ethan didn't want to fully tell Undine about his life quite yet, if she learned of it he could lose her trust.
“So what about yourself?” He asked, “Your ears, I can tell that you’re certainly not human. And why exactly were that bastard Diaz's men after you?" Ethan noticed that the trees in the forest were beginning to thin out; they must have been nearing Kale by now.

(OOC: We should probably arrive in Kale next post.)

 

[Nythe]

Natalia Denar
Meryl Forest

As expected, Artus was shocked when Natalia introduced herself. She could see in his eyes that Artus recognised her surname, but even so, the way he talked to her didn’t change that much. “Uhhh…right. Yeah I’ll come with you. I mean it’ll be a nice change to travel with someone rather than be alone. Alright, I guess we better get going then.” As Artus was sheathing his sword, Natalia quietly sighed and rolled her eyes thinking about the boy’s manners. They followed the path until they arrived to Kale.

Kale

As big as the city was, it wasn’t particularly impressive. Natalia expected the city where the king lived to be more colourful, vibrant and decorated with all sorts of statues, fountains and flowers. Instead, the most imposing thing was the small arch that marked the entrance to the city. The streets were mostly empty as well, apart from a group of people assembled around a fountain. The fountain was a big one, but it was pretty plain so it left Natalia unimpressed.

A soldier in a pale, light blue armour left the group and approached Natalia and Artus. “Hey, you folks should leave. This is not the time for any visitors.” Natalia was going to just walk away and ignore him, she wasn’t going to be ordered around by a simple city guard, who hadn’t even heard of personal hygiene. Besides, she wasn’t planning to stay in Kale for long. Artus, however, wanted to convince the soldier he could stay.

“Uhhh…I’m not trying to be rude, but what’s the problem?” He asked. This should be worth watching. Natalia decided to stick around for a bit longer to see Artus begging the guard not to be thrown out of Kale. “I just wanna talk with Kazu…King Kazu I mean, sorry.” Artus continued.

He obviously has no idea how to refer to his superiors, not just me, but the king as well. Besides, a commoner can’t just approach the king.

The soldier told him exactly that. “Look, if I gave everyone who came here access to speak with him, we’d have another unnecessary problem on our hands. I’m gonna guess you want some sort of request like money?” Somehow though, he then changed his tone and attitude. “I’m not forcing you to leave. If you want to stay, the inn is right over there. It may not be the comfiest place, but it’s cheap. But I'm strongly encouraging you folks to leave as soon as possible.” After that the soldier just walked off.

Surprisingly, Artus didn’t show any relief to be allowed to stay in Kale, more than anything else he was disappointed. Did he honestly believe he would be able to speak to king Kazu just like that? What a weird guy.

“Well, looks like I’m screwed.” Artus said to Natalia and sighed. “So, you got anything you want to do while we’re here? I mean we can look around and explore few places if you want. If not, I plan on staying at the inn for tonight and you’re welcome to stay if you want. I’m pretty sure I got enough money for the both of us.”

Natalia looked at him with a raised eyebrow, her eyes checking for signs of mental illness. “I think I’ll be able to afford a room in the inn. In fact, I was going to look around for something more luxurious than the cheap place the guard was talking about.” Natalia’s voice was reeking of sarcasm. “I don’t plan on staying here for more than a night anyway, I’m still far from my destination. “ She continued with her normal, slightly irritated tone. “You can tag along, if you want.” She started to walk away before stopping and turning back to Artus. “Tell me, did you really believe you would be able to talk to the king? Also, what do you want from him?” Natalia asked with genuine interest.

 

[SteelKing 2012]

Coelnar Ellidyn
Kale

Coelnar made it to Kale after a few dull hours on the path, and was bored half to tears. Once he reached the gates though, he certainly wasn't disappointed. "I-its huge!" he said to himself. "How could people build this?" The biggest building he'd ever seen had been the elder's house in the village, and to him, that had seemed large enough. He walked over to the sign, grinning with astonishment, and admired the writing, tracing it with his finger. Now that's craftsmanship. I made some carvings in the village, but nothing like this. he shook his head in exasperation. You're not here to look at carvings! he scolded himself. I can find somewhere to stay for the night. I imagine I can ask someone where to stay.

With that, he headed into the city, and quickly noticed that it seemed strangely quiet. It may have been bigger than any place he'd seen before, but without people there, it just seemed sad and empty. Coelnar was disappointed, to say the least, but he approached a pair of soldiers who were talking in the street. " 'Scuse me. Is there anywhere I could stay around here?" he called, and one of the soldiers turned and strode over to him. Now, normally, Coelnar would try and avoid confrontation, but by now, he was tired, fed up, and just wanted a place to stay. So when the soldier just glared at him and told him to bother someone else, he snapped, raised his palm, and launched a Sunbeam that scorched the hairs off the side of his head. "I said,"
Coelnar said, his voice dangerously calm, "Is there anywhere I could stay?"

The soldier, eyes wide and fearful at the sight of magic, however weak it was, pointed towards a ramshackle inn that stood across the plaza. Coelnar gave a stiff nod, and with a thin-lipped smile, turned and headed across to the inn, pushing open the door almost silently. The inside was quite shabby- looking, but homely. It made him quite sad, because it was just like the tavern from Sylvain. had been. There were two others outside the door, a pair who looked younger than him. From what he could see, one of them, the boy, was peasant stock, much like Coelnar himself, while the girl seemed to be of a wealthier origin.

Coelnar gave them a slight nod of acknowledgement as he headed through the door. He wasn't the type to barge in on other's conversations, after all. He headed up to the counter without a word, pausing only to take off his cloak, which exposed the tribal tattoos that ran down his arms. It seems strange, he thought, That the town should be empty as it is, yet the inn is still occupied. he smiled slightly, and sat himself down on a chair, placing his axe and cloak on the ground next to him, relieved to finally be able to rest.

(Uhh... Oops. Edited.)

 

[AJ2000]

(OOC: SteelKing, Artus and Natalia are not inside yet.)



Kale
Artus & Natalia



Natalia raised her eyebrow at Artus. Was it something I said? He thought.

“I think I’ll be able to afford a room in the inn. In fact, I was going to look around for something more luxurious than the cheap place the guard was talking about.” Natalia’s voice was reeking of sarcasm. Artus continued to stare a Natalia as she spoke.

Great…Now she thinks she’s too good for sleeping in a regular bed… Artus wasn’t exactly liking her whole “Rich-girl too good for you’ attitude. He wasn’t expecting someone from a family of her stature to behave this way. Can’t we just check in…? It’s just for the night. It kind of felt like he was around a child.

“I don’t plan on staying here for more than a night anyway, I’m still far from my destination. “ She continued with her normal, slightly irritated tone. “You can tag along, if you want.” She started to walk away before stopping and turning back to Artus. “Tell me, did you really believe you would be able to talk to the king? Also, what do you want from him?”

Artus kind of shrugged, not really knowing how to answer her question. “I dunno, I just thought that the King would be willing to help anyone. That’s what people say at least, especially about Kazu. “ He paused for a brief moment. “I mainly just wanted to ask him if he could help me out a bit, with finding a new place to live. My old home, back in Nalan was nearly destroyed, save for a few huts here and there, but a everyone I used to know is gone.” He gave another brief pause to let out a small sigh. “I guess there’s really no reason for me to go back.” He looked down a for a few moments, and then looked at Natalia. He didn't really like giving out his life story, but to since she asked nicely, Artus was happy to oblige.“By the way, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be with your family? You guys are pretty wealthy and powerful, and I doubt Diaz would do any harm to you or your family.”

 

[Nythe]

Natalia Denar
Kale

Artus didn’t answer straight away, he had to think about his answer. Even so, his answer didn’t sound too convincing. “I dunno, I just thought that the King would be willing to help anyone. That’s what people say at least, especially about Kazu.” He is so naïve. Or rather, all common people are, if that’s really what they tell each other.

“I mainly just wanted to ask him if he could help me out a bit, with finding a new place to live. My old home, back in Nalan was nearly destroyed, save for a few huts here and there, but a everyone I used to know is gone.” Artus sighed before continuing. “I guess there’s really no reason for me to go back.” He looked down for a few seconds. It was clear he went through a lot and something like that isn’t easy to talk about. Even Natalia felt sympathetic towards Artus. Artus raised his head once again and looked at her. “By the way, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be with your family? You guys are pretty wealthy and powerful, and I doubt Diaz would do any harm to you or your family.”

Natalia needed a few moments to think about how to reply, especially after hearing Artus’ story. “I’m really sorry about what happened to you. It must’ve been horrible.” She said in the most sympathetic voice she could manage. “About King Kazu, he could be willing to help anyone, but you can’t approach such an important man just like that. I couldn’t see my father without an appointment and even he isn’t even nearly as powerful as the king.” She tried to sound kind, but she didn’t have much practice, so her vocal cords were already starting to hurt.

Natalia paused and looked at Artus to judge if he could be trusted to hear her story. “Actually, Diaz apparently doesn’t mind hurting out family. His men have already attacked and conquered one of our estates in the East. As nobody else was willing to liberate it from the invaders, I decided to do it on my own.” Natalia’s voice returned to normal, she wanted Artus to know she was doing him a favour by revealing her story. “Of course, I can’t do it on my own, so I was planning to hire some mercenaries in Kale to help me. Though, given the state of Kale, I doubt I’ll find any around here.” Natalia sighed. “That’s why I said you can come with me. We can talk about the details inside, if you are interested.” Natalia moved her head in the direction of the inn to show what she meant by inside.

I don’t feel like running around the city to find something that may or may not be there anyway.

Artus silently agreed, so they entered the inn. Natalia frowned the moment she opened the door. It was an average inn, but even after a few days on the road, Natalia couldn’t forget the comfort and luxury of her home. The inn wasn’t completely full, but it was crowded compared to the streets. Natalia recognised a young man that had just entered the inn while they were talking outside. He was sitting on his own with his axe lying on the floor next to him. They made their way between the chairs and tables to the counter. “We’d like to take two rooms for the night.” Natalia said to the woman behind the counter who passed them two keys without a word. Natalia and Artus each took a key. They found a free table and sat down at it. “So, what do you think? Would you come with me?” Natalia asked straight away.

 

[Samantha Sparks]

Undine Pandora Aqua
Meryl Forest

"I see... that is quite a fine tale. Sounds like you've got an affinity for the sea too. I shall tell you mine..."

Undine coughed for a while, spewing out water.

"I am a member of the Great Aqua Tribe. We have roamed the waters around these lands for many years. Many believe we are Undines, some say mermaids or sirens. Some even exaggerate us to be the great Leviathans! Of course, we were great until the troops appeared and genocided my people, or so I hope to think. I ran away like a coward on that very day. However, today, it is a new beginning. Or at least, it will be. It will be really soon I hope... I guess the 'men' of 'Diaz' were out to kill any survivors..."

Undine noted that they were heading out towards some town Civilisation... gah...
Undine hid behind the Captain. In a matter of seconds, she summoned a navy blue cloak out of nothingness and veiled her entire body with it. Next, she walked towards a sign which said 'Kale'.

"Let us proceed, Captain," she walked slowly towards an Inn. "I have heard how these things work. I believe we should share a 'room', and take a rest for tomorrow."

 

[SteelKing 2012]

(I edited my post by the way, so.. Yeah. ^.^' He saw them outside instead.)

Coelnar Ellidyn
Kale


Coelnar sat at his table, silently debating his next course of action. He had enough money to stay the night, but beyond that, practically nothing. He wasn't sure where he would go, or how he would achieve his goals. It was all well and good to dream of revenge, but deep inside, he knew he was deluding himself. I only defeated one of them, and that was luck, nothing more. If I'm going to dream of revenge, I need the means to achieve it, after all. Why didn't I think anything through? What can I do against them, anyway? he sat at his table, with a small plate of bread and a glass of water on the table in front of him. He didn't have the money to afford choicer fare, but was glad of it in any case. Again, it reminded him of home.

He heard the door creaking open, and the pair he'd seen earlier came in, renting themselves rooms for the night. The owner seemed surprised to have any business at all, and Coelnar smiled at the look on her face when they turned away. It seems she's getting better business than anyone else in this city. The pair took a seat at one of the many empty tables, and continued their conversation in hushed tones, too quietly for Coelnar to overhear anything. I wonder what brought them here? Not that it's my business, anyway, he thought, returning to his food. The bread was quite tough and stale, and Coelnar had to make an effort to swallow it. Say what you would about the mountains, at least their food had always been fresh.

Coelnar wasn't too thrilled with the prospect of ferrying coins around daily, either. They seemed to have no use other than to be spent. Back home, most trade was done through barter, and Coelnar's family had been some of the few that carried any money with them. It still seemed pointless to him, though. Better to trade with things of use, in his reckoning. Or at least, he thought, as one of the coins fell from his hand, Things that were harder to drop! He sighed as he bent to pick up the coin, and caught a splinter off of the table. I'll wager townsfolk would think the same of the system we had, though. Each to his own.

With that, he sat up again, and started finishing up the remains of his food with a slight smile.

 

[Deleted member 300066]

Ethan Daggett
Kale

Ethan listened to Undine’s story, it was similar to his own, in a way, she was the only remaining member of her tribe whilst Ethan was the only remaining member of the Myrydian. As they neared Kale Undine created a navy blue cloak, seemingly with magic, it was probably for the best, she would likely attract too much attention from the townsfolk otherwise.

Ethan and Undine entered Kale.
“Let us proceed, Captain” Undine said, she began making her way towards an inn. “I have heard how these things work. I believe we should share a ‘room’, and take a rest for tomorrow.” Undine acted as if the concept of an inn was alien to her, Ethan guessed that it really was. He had heard of her tribe, he knew they were quite distant from other civilizations but he didn’t quite know how far.

So she wants to share a room? Ethan thought to himself, sharing a room with a woman he barely knew wasn’t new to Ethan, though it had always been under different ‘circumstances’ before.
“Alright, I guess that’s a good plan” Ethan said. Ethan wasn’t sure how long he would stick around Kale, he wasn’t even fully sure what he planned to do in Kale, he wanted to assemble a crew, but the streets seemed pretty barren. Ethan also wanted to gather info on Oceon’s Blade whilst he was here, but he didn’t know where to start, he also planned to try and grab some money off some poor sucker who wasn’t paying attention, his funds were beginning to run a bit low.

As they approached the inn, a guard approached the pair.
“Hey you two ought to not be here,” The guard said “This ain’t a great time.” Ethan completely disregarded the guard and entered the inn.

The inside of the inn was pretty bare; it looked like any other inn Ethan had stayed in, however it was its few visitors which stood out. There were three distinct visitors that Ethan noticed, all of which were armed. It wasn’t rare to see people armed with weapons in inns, especially in the shady places Ethan had stayed before, but these weren’t mere daggers, He spotted a large two handed battle-axe on the floor by one of the visitors. At one table sat a man and a woman, they appeared about the same age as Undine, between them they had three swords. Who exactly were these people? Oh well, Ethan wasn’t there to judge, he did have a sword and a gun himself. Ethan approached the counter of the inn and ordered a drink, rum. He sat at a table; sitting at the next table along was the axe-wielder. Ethan looked down at the axe, it was certainly an impressive weapon, Ethan hadn’t seen many weapons like it, something like a two handed axe would be pretty impractical on a tight, enclosed ship.
“So what, you expectin’ trouble?” Ethan asked as he turned to the man, he took a gulp of his rum.

(OOC: I thought it might be a good idea to finally get Coelnar some character interaction.

I had a guard warn us about entering the town as well, it seemed to make sense considering Natalia and Artus were also warned.)

 

[SteelKing 2012]

Coelnar Ellidyn
Kale

Coelnar was still thinking about his plans, and didn't notice the new arrivals, so he was quite surprised to be spoken to. "So what, you expectin' trouble?" one of them asked, glancing at his axe. He looked quite unusual, well, his clothes did, in any case. Not that Coelnar could really comment on that score. He was glad of a chance to talk though, and looked up with a smile. "What, this?" he said, gesturing to his axe,"You could say that. I've certainly had more than my share recently, anyway, though to be honest, I prefer hunting to fighting." Coelnar said, acknowledging the man's rather unusual companion with a smile and a nod.

He looked at the pair of them. "Still, it doesn't seem that I'm the only one in here with a weapon. You seem to be armed well enough, and the pair over there." he grinned. It was mainly out of pure relief at having another human being to talk to, though on closer inspection, his companion appeared to have fins on her head, and seemed even less comfortable with the inn than Coelnar himself. "But still, I'll wager there's plenty we can talk about. For instance..." he gave a small smile, "What brings you two to Kale? I'll tell you my story in turn, if you wish." At least he felt at ease now, which was more than he had before. He was certainly interested to hear their story, and wondered if it would be as strange as his own. From first impressions,though, this pair seemed decent enough.

 

[AJ2000]

Kale
Meredith's Inn
Artus Callum


“I’m really sorry about what happened to you. It must’ve been horrible.” Artus could tell Natalia was actually trying to be sympathetic, surprisingly. “About King Kazu, he could be willing to help anyone, but you can’t approach such an important man just like that. I couldn’t see my father without an appointment and even he isn’t even nearly as powerful as the king.” Artus knew she had a point. If it were hard for her to see her own business-mogul father, it would definitely be hard to see the King. She then gave Artus a sort weird look, as if she was deciding something. “Actually, Diaz apparently doesn’t mind hurting out family. His men have already attacked and conquered one of our estates in the East. As nobody else was willing to liberate it from the invaders, I decided to do it on my own.” She gave a brief pause. “Of course, I can’t do it on my own, so I was planning to hire some mercenaries in Kale to help me. Though, given the state of Kale, I doubt I’ll find any around here.” Natalia sighed. “That’s why I said you can come with me. We can talk about the details inside, if you are interested.” Artus nodded. He appreciated the fact that since he told his story, she was willing to trust him and give her side on how the war has affected her. He followed her into the inn.

Once inside, Natalia gave a slight frown. She probably wasn’t used to the whole ’commoner style-living’. She walked up to the main counter. “We’d like to take two rooms for the night.” The lady behind the counter nodded and handed them two keys. Since it was war period, low-class places like this inn probably weren’t taking money, seeing as any business was good business. Artus took a good a good look around, and saw it mostly empty, except a few commoners here and there, however they didn’t look like travellers, seeing as they mostly wear armor or carry weapons. However there was this one guy who had an axe next to him, a rather big one at that. Artus and Natalia grabbed a table, and she quickly fired the question. “So, what do you think? Would you like to come with me?” Artus didn’t answer right away. He needed to think for a few moments. He had his own motives, and didn’t want to travel. He would have rather just stay in Kale if he could, but he knew that unless he could see the King, there was no way.

“Alright I guess, I’m in…” Artus spoke. “Are you asking me ‘cus I came to your rescue last time?” Artus laughed, jokingly asking, while flexing his bicep. Of course he was only trying to push her buttons. Artus took a look around and saw two more guests walking in, however this time they were travellers. The way they were dressed was obvious, and carried weapons. One of them took a seat next to the axe guy, and they started to talk. Artus looked away, as he didn’t want them thinking he was listening in to their conversation. He looked around the room some more, and noticed that there was hardly anyone in there. There were two random village folk having a drink in the corner, Artus and Natalia, and those other three shady-looking travellers. There must be a reason...and why did the guards push us away? Artus supposed that there was something he didn’t know. Although he didn’t care much about these kinds of things, the whole vibe of the city was off. “I’ll be right back.” He said to Natalia. He walked up to the counter-lady. “Hey, why is this place so empty?”

The lady looked at him and smiled. “Because we’re not busy?” She said slightly sarcastically.

No duh… Artus thought. Immediately he could tell he wouldn’t like this lady. For some reason Artus kept running into girls with attitude problems. “No, man…I mean why is the CITY so empty?” He put emphasis on the city, so she would possibly understand better.

“Maybe because everyone is inside?” She said again, this time looking serious, and right into Artus’ eyes.

“God damn…” He cussed under his breath. He wasn’t the kind of guy to get angry, but this lady was really irritating him. She then sighed and looked at Artus in a worried manner. This caught Artus’ attention. She better say something worthwhile…

“A few days ago, Grandora attacked Kale.” She gave a small pause. Artus was shocked that Grandora attacked, and even more so that the news hadn’t travelled yet. “We were told to keep it a secret, to prevent any sort of panic among other places.”

“Well…did they do anything? The city looks fine, I mean there’s no damage, so it was a failed attempt right?” Artus said, trying to assure himself that Kale was a safe place to live. Sadly, the lady nodded sideways.

“They took Princess Luna.” She calmly said. Artus wasn’t sure what to say. In situations like, he had to be careful in case he said something that would question his presence in the city. “She’s being held in Galvez Prison. God knows what happening in there…” The lady started to get teary-eyed, and it was obvious she cared about the Princess.

“….and what about Kazu? Can’t he something?” Artus asked. “I mean it’s his sister, shouldn’t he do something?”

The lady nodded sideways once again. “It’s too much of a risk. He tried to send his men down there, but none of them returned. We need his protection in the city, and if he goes to save her, then the war has ended if he gets captured. Diaz has Kazu at checkmate.” Artus felt helpless, an honestly wanted to help, but there was only so much one person could do. Not to mention he already agreed to help Natalia and her little quest. “Commander Ghan said it was Diaz’s orders to capture Luna…” Right then, she immediately caught Artus’ attention.

Commander Ghan… Artus knew this was the person who infiltrated his hometown and destroyed everything. “Do you know if he’s there at Galvez Prison?” The lady shrugged. She obviously didn’t know, but Artus wanted to find out. Finding a new home could wait. Right now, he needed to find Ghan. “Hey, Nat…” He spoke softer than usual, and had a more serious tone. “I don’t think I can go with you right now…” He gulped a bit, as his stomach started to ache a bit. “I’m gonna go to Galvez. I have a score to settle with someone.” Right then, a couple of people drinking rum in the corner spat out their drink in astonishment.

“You’re an idiot! Who the Hell goes to Galvez on purpose?” A random man yelled. “Are you seriously that stupid? Kazu sent some of his men and even they didn’t make it back! In fact, they didn’t even make it to the Prison itself, they died before they could even get there!” The man sat down, gasping for air.

Clearly this guy has issues… Artus thought. It was his decision, why should anyone care? He knew it was a stupid move, but considering the current state of the country, he honestly didn’t care if he died at Galvez, as long as he took down Ghan with him. “It’s my decision. And besides, if Kazu is too chickenshit to even save his own sister, then there’s really no hope for this country.” Artus insulted Kazu out of anger, however the strangers brushed the insult off. He looked at Natalia. “Sorry, but I have to do this. Ghan is the guy that destroyed my village, and I’m gonna take him down. It’ll also probably catch Diaz off guard.” He stopped for a pause. “I’m not asking you to come with me…so I guess this is the last time we’ll see each other.”

 

[Samantha Sparks]

Undine Pandora Aqua
Meredith's Inn

Undine simply stood about, silent and shy. The inn was surprisingly crowded, and Undine hated crowds. A lot.
Undine then proceeded to look around the area. Just then, a guard halted their tracks, warning them about incoming danger. Despite this, the Captain proceeded. Not wanting to be left behind, she followed the Captain as well.
The insides of the inn looked rather nice, a place one would like to stay in, maybe not Undine.
Undine then took a seat, prior to noting that the Captain seemed to be starting a fight. She was about to stop it...

Before the fight could start, it never happened. The opposing side, an axe-wielder, attempted to start a friendly conversation. For some reason, she was shy towards strangers and was unwilling to share her tale with him. Despite this, she sat at the same table as him.

 

[Corrosion]

((OOC:…poor Asher. Dark Sight: Available. How long should the posts be? Sorry about any terrible grammar -- I'm quite tired.))

Meryl Forest
Asher Ikakois

Asher did not realize that the person in the corner was attempting to drain the occupants of the tavern of their energy, for he felt nothing. He could now see, even in the darkness of the tavern, that the odd person was male, blond, and slender. His dark clothes would draw attention to him in the daylight, but now, at night, he could blend in with the corner of the tavern. People certainly were not paying attention to the darkly-clothed person; however, they could merely have been distracted by the construct’s appearance. The blond guy asked the waitress if she knew who Asher was; she responded in the negative, yet went on to chatter incessantly about how abnormal things had been lately. Asher had wanted to ask someone, anyone, why Diaz was invading all willy-nilly, but his sorrow and guilt for abandoning Aime were stronger than his sense of curiosity.

Asher was ushered to his room later that evening. It was sparsely furnished and unadorned, but he was going to use the space for sleep and naught else. Even as a non-human, Asher still required sleep and water, the food being taken care of by the Restoration spell, for he needed relaxation and the core had to check his body to ascertain that its container was functioning correctly. He set his bag by the foot of his bed, took off his clothes and shook them out to rid them of any pests that might have found him tasty, put them back on, and crawled into bed. He dreamt of nothing but Diaz’s army wreaking havoc in Aime, and people being killed. Those were the same dreams he had been having for the past four days.

Halfway through the night, soldiers barged into Asher’s room, and one said, with slurred words, “Heh, look at this! Fancy there being a girl here! Let’s have some fun with ’er before we turn ‘er in.” In the dark, they had mistaken Asher for a girl because of his long hair, slender frame, and his habit of sleeping curled-up. The soldier who had spoken dragged the construct up by his hair, gripping it near the nape of the neck, and hauled him up to face both of the soldiers. They had been carrying a lantern with them, and now they could plainly see that Asher was, indeed, male. “What? A guy?” one of the soldiers slurred, outraged that they had been mistaken, “Never mind, we’ll just turn ‘im in.” Asher was confused and rather sleepy, so he allowed the soldiers to drag him down the stairs and out of the tavern by his feet (they had turned him around, as hair isn’t the easiest thing to pull by). The cold night air woke his mind up completely, and he began to struggle. Unfortunately for him, his body was still tired, the soldiers retaliated by kicking him; Asher made feeble attempts to cease their attack, but with two of them ganging up on him and not enough strength to toss one of them, he resigned himself to being beat up. He could not sound a word of protest while the guards taunted and kicked him; he regretting have not slept with his pack next to him.

The blond-haired person was scaring away the soldiers, who, after a night of heavy drinking, were not ready to take on a fighter who had had some sleep and no alcohol. Asher felt the blows decrease after one of the people assaulting him was killed, and then they stopped altogether when a revenant was sent to chase down the remaining soldier. The blond extended a hand to Asher, who was currently bending over in pain and trying not to throw up. The construct turned to look at his savior’s face, and then began to cough; nevertheless, he accepted the help.

Asher let go of the hand when he could stand without swaying too much, but his stomach still hurt and he was a bit dizzy. ’Restoration,’ he thought, concentrated, and breathed easier when it started to take effect. He was unsure of how to communicate to his rescuer, but, as both were silent, there appeared to be no need to. He had attempted to “talk” to people in the dark before, but that had never worked out the way he hand intended it to, and so he had stopped those ineffectual tries, which more-or-less involved him either pressing the words on the lump of metal against someone’s face, or standing there awkwardly while holding the metal. He turned his head towards the tavern and began to quickly walk; across the main floor, up the stairs, into his room, and by his bed to retrieve his pack. He walked a bit more slowly down the stairs, as he was encumbered with a bag that pressed on his soon-to-be-bruised side every time he took a step. His lump of metal remained in the bag and he was grateful for that as he had no other convenient way of communicating.

As soon as he was outside, Asher bowed his head to the person who had saved him, but had no idea of what to do after. He was confused as to why, exactly, this person had helped him, and not the other people who had been captured. He wished to ask that person why that had been so, but the lack of sufficient light to read by prevented him from doing so. He was required by the core and his “programming” to return favors that had been given to him out-of-the-blue, but how could he tell this person that he was going to help him and not merely stalk him? He backed away shyly, aware that his devotion often tipped people off to the fact that he was not human, and he wished to hide that. He started to look away from the blond person, feeling a bit unsure of what to do, now that one person was dead, that dead person was chasing a not-so-dead person and he was required by law to do something about it. He supposed that he could construe it as self-defense, but he was also indebted to the person who had killed which made things a bit more complicated. He was, on the other hand, rather curious as how the stranger had come by his skills and why he was in the forest, and he felt that following him could answer those questions.

 

[Deleted member 300066]

Ethan Daggett: Post 7

Ethan Daggett
Meredith's Inn, Kale

“What, this?” The man replied, gesturing towards his axe “You could say that. I’ve certainly had more than my share recently, anyway, though to be honest, I prefer hunting to fighting”. The man then noticed Undine, he nodded to her politely.
“Heh, it’s certainly a fine weapon” Ethan said as he admired the handy-work. “Shame it’s mostly going towards hunting, you could certainly crack some heads with that thing.”
“Still, it doesn’t seem that I’m the only one here with a weapon. You seem to be armed well enough, and the pair over there.” Continued the man, Ethan turned to look at the other pair
“You can say that again,” Ethan replied
“But still, I’ll wager there’s plenty we can talk about. For instance, what brings you two to kale? I’ll tell my story in turn, if you wish.”

“Well I was initially here to try and get some information, I had something taken from me, you see, was also lookin’ to recruit some men for my ship’s crew as well.” Ethan said, he left out the part about his plans to steal some gold “Doesn’t look like I’m going to find many people here, though, the damn place is a ghost town. I happened upon Undine here on my way” he gestured with his head towards Undine “Had some trouble with Diaz’s men, but nothing we couldn’t handle” He said the last part quite proudly. Ethan took another drink.

Ethan noticed a commotion going on in the other side of the room, the man from the sword wielding pair. He seemed to be planning on heading out towards Galvez, that was Diaz’s prison, sounded like a good place to get some info on Oceon’s Blade, or maybe even find it. Ethan thought for a moment before placing his drink on the table. Ethan noted the pair of men spitting out their drinks in astonishment.
Pansies… Ethan thought
“Hey Boy!” he shouted across the tavern, “If you’re headin’ out towards Galvez, count me in!”

 

[Nythe]

Natalia Denar
Kale
Meredith’s Inn

Artus didn’t answer straight away, he was deep in his thoughts. “Alright I guess, I’m in…” Artus said eventually. “Are you asking me ‘cus I came to your rescue last time?” He continued laughingly and flexed his bicep. Natalia just about managed not to fall for the bait and explode. This brat! Is he even worth the trouble? Annoyingly, I currently don’t have any other options. She clenched her jaw and sunk her nails deep into her thighs, but managed to restrain herself from answering Artus’ teasing. Artus however wasn’t even interested in her reaction, or at least her pretended not to be. He looked around the room for a bit before saying “I’ll be right back.” and walking off to the counter. Natalia just nodded because her anger hadn’t cooled down yet.

While Artus was talking to the counter-lady, Natalia then took a look around herself. It seemed that another pair had entered the inn during her conversation with Artus. They were a tall blonde man in long brown coat and a blue-haired girl wearing a navy-blue cloak. They were now sitting next to the guy with the huge axe talking to them. There were also two commoners drinking in the corner. Apart from them there was nothing worth noting, although even the two peasants almost fell in the same category. After she was done with the inspection of the room she focused on the conversation Artus was having.

“A few days ago, Grandora attacked Kale.” The woman made a short pause before continuing. “We were told to keep it a secret, to prevent any sort of panic among other places.” Natalia was shocked. She leaned forward and gave the conversation full attention. It turned out Kazu’s sister Luna was taken to Galvez Prison by Commander Ghan, whoever he was. It also seemed people had given up on rescuing her.

Artus turned to Natalia. “Hey, Nat…” His voice was surprisingly soft, but full of determination. Natalia was still in too big a shock to object to the way Artus referred to her. “I don’t think I can go with you right now…” He paused. “I’m gonna go to Galvez. I have a score to settle with someone.”

That fool! He obviously has a death wish. He could just come along with me and get rewarded for it, but no. He’d rather get himself killed. The other guests of the inn seemed to share her opinion. “You’re an idiot! Who the Hell goes to Galvez on purpose?” Someone shouted from the corner. “Are you seriously that stupid? Kazu sent some of his men and even they didn’t make it back! In fact, they didn’t even make it to the Prison itself, they died before they could even get there!”

Artus didn’t seem to care. “It’s my decision. And besides, if Kazu is too chickenshit to even save his own sister, then there’s really no hope for this country.” He turned to Natalia. “Sorry, but I have to do this. Ghan is the guy that destroyed my village, and I’m gonna take him down. It’ll also probably catch Diaz off guard. I’m not asking you to come with me…so I guess this is the last time we’ll see each other.”

So that’s why he’s so determined. Actually, this isn’t unlike my situation, so I understand where he’s coming from. The difference however is that I can afford to hire others to assist me, while he’s helpless. Well, if he wants to meet his death, who am I to stop him. I’m pretty sure I could hire those three instead. However, it turned out she couldn’t. The tall blonde man, who had just arrived immediately volunteered to join Artus. “Hey Boy!” the man shouted. “If you’re headin’ out towards Galvez, count me in!”

This could be inconvenient. It seems those three know each other, so the others will probably join as well. If those three left with Artus, there wouldn’t be any thugs left for me to hire. However, Galvez is in the same direction as Rose Manor. If I joined them as well, it would be easier to convince them to help me. Besides, I could use some battle practice.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Artus. Of course I’m going with you.” Natalia said with an irritated voice. Even though Artus’ company wasn’t the reason for her decision, it could be beneficial to her, if Artus believed it was.

 

[SteelKing 2012]

Coelnar Ellidyn
Kale

"Well, I was initially here to try and get some information, I had something taken from me, you see, was also lookin' to recruit some men for my ship's crew as well." the man said, “Doesn’t look like I’m going to find many people here, though, the damn place is a ghost town. I happened upon Undine here on my way” he gestured with his head towards his companion. “Had some trouble with Diaz’s men, but nothing we couldn’t handle." Coelnar's eyes widened at the mention of Diaz. "Diaz, huh? Seems we have something in common, then."

Coelnar nodded, and gave a brief summary of his own tale. "I've had trouble with Diaz's men, myself." he said. "They destroyed my village, and imprisoned my people. I was the only one to escape. I'm not sure what the attack was even for, but.. You could say that I'm looking for revenge, I suppose. I imagine the soldiers that did it are in Grandora by now." he shook his head. "I killed one of them, though, at least. I'm normally peaceful, but if I ever see any of them again..." he trailed off, and drank the rest of his water with a grim smile. "My name's Coelnar by the way. Coelnar Ellidyn." he said, speaking to both of them.

Before the man could reply, there was a commotion on the other side of the room, which attracted the interest of both Coelnar and the man. The man from the other pair seemed to be saying something, but Coelnar didn't catch it. He wasn't sure what had been said until one of the men at another table spat out his drink in shock and yelled. "You're an idiot! Who the hell goes to Galvez on purpose!" Galvez... Coelnar thought. They might have taken the villagers there... I don't know where I could go anyway, so I suppose there'd be no harm in going... The man he'd been talking to turned and shouted across the room. "Hey Boy!" "If you're headin out towards Galvez, count me in!" he yelled.

It only took a moment's thought for Coelnar to decide. He looked across the room, and looked at the man with a slight nod. "I think I'll head along too. There are a few people in that hole that I'm fond of, and I'd be glad to lend you a hand." he said.

 

[Schade]

Keres Adrastea
On the road

After helping the non-human up, he quickly started walking towards the tavern again, without saying a word, or thanking him or anything. "How rude.." Keres thought, then giggled softly to himself. Then, he suddenly felt the stench of death in the surrounding energies, and saw the solider he resurrected coming towards him, stopping a few feets away. It was obvious he wanted to follow Keres. "A spell to summon a... slave?" Keres disliked slavery, but a revenant could come in handy.. If he just changed clothings first. the emperor's armor would draw lots of attention, not to mention it was really bloody, as the solider had a deep cut on his throat, which unabled him to any sort of speaking. "Follow.. you.." he tried to say, but as words came out of his lips, blood came out of his throat. "That's a problem.." Keres thought, before taking his hand, guiding him niside after the non-human. "Hey, let us out of here!" The fat barmaid shouted from behind, wearing a bit too tight gown, showing off her rather unpleasent legs. Keres gave them a short look, and went back to the tavern

Inside, Keres guided the fallen solider to one of the guests room, trying to find him some new clothing. The non-human went on in his own room, probably grabbing his stuff.. whatever that might be. Keres found some good-looking clothes, and somehow managed to remove the soliders armor. The solider was a young man, about Keres' age, tall and well built. His hair was short, and dark brown. His face was pretty, if you're not looking at his terrifying black eyes or cut in the throat. "Hood" Keres said. The solider found a red hooded cape lying besides the bed, and put it on over a quite anonymous white shirt and dark leather pants and boots. "Nice!" Keres said, and tapped him on the shoulder, making more blood oze out, blending in with the cape. "Well, you'll run out sometime" Keres said.

He met up with the non-human outside, and he gracefully bowed down to Keres, expressing his gratitude. "About time.." Keres said. the non-human looked a bit shy, and stepped backwards, it appeared he wanted to tag along with Keres. This could come of handy, as Keres could drain his energy for emergency situations. Why he wanted to tag along, he could not imagine. would he be in the way? probably, but two are always better than one, and the solider would not last forever. Keres then noticed something in the crowd of locked up people. A map? a map would be nice. Keres had no idea what to do now, but he knew he couldn't stay. He went towards the man holding the map, and he could see the fear in his eyes. "That map. Give it to me" Keres said calmly. "W-wait a minute! You have to release us, you cannot just give up on us an...". Keres had enough, and stabbed the man in his stomach with his clawed gauntlet. The man fell over, and dropped the map. a little boy beside him picked it up and handed it to Keres without saying a word. Keres was annoyed. He called to his orb, and chanted the resurrection spell again, and the man he slaughtered rose. "Massacre!" Keres said, before turning away, leaving the screams behind.

"Here!" Keres said to the non-human, who was looking worringly at the fallen solider. he appeared to be troubled with something. Whatever that was, Keres really didn't care. "Stay away from him!" He said to the non-human, after sneaking up on him from behind. "We're going here!" He said, and pushed the map practically at the non-humans face. theer was an X marked at somewhere named 'Kale'